1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to orthopedic devices and methods therefor, and more specifically relates to improved orthopedic pillow support devices used to hold, support, cushion and immobilize a patient's injured arm or a patient's arm with respect to a patient's injured shoulder and methods therefor.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the past, various types of orthopedic devices were created to support an arm and/or shoulder during post-surgical or non-surgical recovery from injury. These devices are often used prior to surgery as well. For example, to aid in the healing of and to provide relief to a shoulder suffering from any number of ailments such as rotator cuff injury, sprains, dislocations, humeral fractures and other injuries, it is critical to stabilize and immobilize the respective forearm and upper arm at a desired position with respect to the injured shoulder to prevent shoulder joint movement. It is further necessary to position the arm away from the upper torso at an abduction angle that is most conducive to reducing shoulder joint stress. It is also important to provide such support during both waking and sleeping hours while providing the utmost comfort and convenience to the patient.
The prior art includes a number of orthopedic devices for supporting an arm and shoulder. For example, one familiar device is the arm sling. It is simply comprised of material in which an arm, typically bent at the elbow at approximately a ninety degree angle, is placed in a shoulder strap for holding the material and arm in place. This type of device provides minimal arm and shoulder support but provides no immobilization of the arm and shoulder joints. It also generally does not provide cushioning for comfort.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,517 describes a device that supports an arm and immobilizes a shoulder. It is essentially a metal brace comprised of multiple rigid assemblies mounted to a patient's torso to support a rigid horizontal member, which, in turn, supports an arm in a horizontal-only position. This device suffers from numerous drawbacks. It is a complex device comprised of many rigid, metal parts and is consequently bulky, heavy, uncomfortable and not conducive for wearing over long periods of time. Furthermore, it limits the position of the arm to substantially the horizontal plane making it inflexible and unable to be worn in the recumbent (lying down) position. Therefore, a patient who needed the benefits of this device around the clock had to either remove the device to sleep in the recumbent position or sleep in an uncomfortable upright position.
Another orthopedic device developed was a shoulder immobilizer which provided a sling-type apparatus to hold an arm and a separate pillow device wrapped around a patient's waist upon which the arm rests. Weaknesses of this two-piece device are that it is only utilized for post-surgery situations and is not designed for recumbent use.
Moreover, none of the prior devices provided much versatility in terms of their application to a variety of injuries and conditions, flexibility of positioning the arm with respect to the patient's body, ease of use, and comfort, all in one device.
Accordingly, there existed a definite need to provide a new orthopedic support device that would be useful for a shoulder injury, arm injury or both; portable and lightweight; extremely comfortable to wear; easy to attach to the body; reversible for attachment to either the left arm and shoulder or right arm and shoulder; adjustable to the size of the patient and the desired position; and easier and less costly to manufacture than related devices. This device would be versatile enough for use in a wide variety of orthopedic applications ranging from non-surgical type arm or shoulder sprains, dislocations and fractures to post-surgical recovery periods such as that after a rotator cuff surgery or other shoulder surgeries. Furthermore, since patients who must wear the devices of the prior art to sleep must remain in the upright, sitting position, it was especially important to provide a device that could be worn in the recumbent, as well as upright positions.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,383, of which this is a continuation in part, addresses almost all of these needs--the device disclosed therein is useful for a shoulder injury, arm injury or both; portable and lightweight; extremely comfortable to wear; easy to attach to the body; reversible for attachment to either the left arm and shoulder or right arm and shoulder; adjustable to the size of the patient and the desired position; and easier and less costly to manufacture than related devices. However, the device in U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,383, while adequate for most applications, does not provide sufficient support for the patient's forearm, wrist and hand, with the result that the patient's hand and wrist can droop. Such drooping can, in certain specific instances, be uncomfortable for a patient, and a device that permits such drooping may in such instances be less therapeutic than a device that prevents wrist and hand drooping. Therefore, a need existed for a new orthopedic support device to address the issues listed above and, additionally, that would provide additional support to the forearm, wrist and hand of the patient, so as to minimize or prevent the drooping of the patient's wrist and/or hand and, generally, to further immobilize the patient's arm, including the patient's forearm, wrist, and hand.